Published 5:38 am, Monday, August 1, 2016

PRESS RELEASE

HOUSTON - The AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl Committee has selected the 2016 Class of Gridiron Legends, the Bowl announced today. All five honorees will be introduced at the 2016 AdvoCare Texas Kickoff game on Sept. 3 and will be inducted to the Gridiron Legends at a special pregame ceremony during the AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl game at NRG Stadium on Dec. 28.

The class of 2016 is headlined by Emmy Award winner and esteemed sportscaster Jim Nantz along with Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL star Billy Sims. The two men are joined by three-time Pro Bowler and University of Texas Hall of Honor member Eric Metcalf, two-time Butkus Award winner and College Football Hall of Fame member Brian Bosworth and storied Texas high school football coach Oscar Cripps.

The Gridiron Legends are all individuals who have made a significant contribution to the game of football in the state of Texas, either at the high school, collegiate or professional level. The 2016 class joins 59 other Gridiron Legends who have been inducted since the Bowl’s inception in 2006, including Texas greats Curley Culp, Bum Phillips, Joe Greene, Earl Campbell, Andre Ware, John David Crow, Jack Pardee and Dave Campbell.

Five-time National Sportscaster of the Year and three-time Emmy Award winner Jim Nantz is one of the most distinguished sports broadcasters of all time. The University of Houston graduate joined the CBS Television Network in 1985 and has been covering a wide range of sports for over 30 years. Nantz began his career at the Network as the host of the college football studio show and later became the lead voice of college football, calling the National Championship games following the 1996 and 1997 seasons. Throughout his storied career, Nantz has hosted broadcasts of the Masters, the PGA Championship and anchored the biennial Presidents Cup. The owner of Jim Nantz Productions, established in 2005, he has been the lead play-by-play announcer for The NFL on CBS since 2004. In addition, Nantz calls the Network’s NFL Thursday Night Football games and previously anchored the Network’s NFL pregame studio show, The NFL TODAY. The youngest recipient of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award was the first commentator in history to call the Super Bowl, the NCAA Men’s Final Four and the Masters within a 63-day span. Nantz repeated the three-feat in 2013 and 2016. In addition to the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award, Nantz received the Curt Gowdy Media Award, the Court of Honor Award from the National Association of Basketball Coaches Foundation and the Metropolitan Golf Association’s Distinguished Service Award. He has been honored by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, as well as the University of Houston’s Hall of Honor. Nantz created the Nantz National Alzheimer Center at the Houston Methodist Hospital to fund innovative diagnostic discoveries for early and accurate detection of Alzheimer’s and other dementing diseases.

Former college standout and NFL running back Billy Sims played five seasons in the National Football League. The first overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft was selected by the Detroit Lions after a memorable career at the University of Oklahoma. During his time as a Sooner, Sims led the Big Eight in rushing and the nation in scoring for two consecutive years. The two-time consensus All-American won the prestigious Heisman Trophy as a junior in 1978 as well as the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award. After rushing for 1,303 yards and 13 touchdowns during his first season with the Lions, Sims became the NFL’s AP Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1980. The three-time Pro Bowl selection was the Lions’ offensive MVP in 1980, 1982 and 1983 and led the Lions to two successive playoff appearances. In addition, Sims played an integral role in helping the Lions claim the NFC Central division title in 1983. The storied running back ranks second on the Lions’ all-time rushing list with 5,106 yards and 42 touchdowns. Sims was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame in 1995. Today, the Texas-raised athlete owns and maintains his own barbeque franchise, Billy Sims Barbeque, which he launched in 2004.

Former Texas Longhorn and NFL star, Eric Metcalf, is one of the most distinguished two-sport athletes in Longhorn history. As a member of both the track and field and football teams, Metcalf broke numerous records that still stand today. A four-time All-American in track and field, Metcalf won the National Championship in the long jump in 1986 and 1988 and placed eighth in the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials. In addition to his success on the track, Metcalf was a three-time All-Southwest Conference selection, second-team All-American and winner of the Southwest Conference Player of the Year in 1987. Along with holding every running back receiving record, Metcalf remains the only player in Texas history to lead the team in all-purpose yards for four consecutive years. Metcalf’s success on the football field continued after the Cleveland Browns selected him in the first round of the 1989 NFL Draft. The three-time Pro Bowl selection ranks 12th on the NFL’s All Time Kick Returns List, 13th on the All Time All-Purpose Yards List and his 12 returned kick touchdowns are tied for third-most in NFL history. During his 13 years in the NFL, Metcalf found time to create the Seatown Express Track Club to inspire athletes to pursue track and earn college scholarships through the sport. The son of former NFL running back, Terry Metcalf, is a member of the University of Texas’ Hall of Honor.

Brian Bosworth, nicknamed “The Boz,” was a two-time consensus All-American and led Oklahoma to the National Championship in 1985. In addition to winning a National Championship, Bosworth is the only player in history to have won the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s most outstanding linebacker, two consecutive times and finished his college career with 413 tackles in three seasons. Bosworth starred at Irving MacArthur High School in the Dallas area prior to his time at OU and was named to the UIL’s All-Century Defensive Team in 2009. Upon retiring from professional football, Bosworth entered the film industry and has appeared in numerous movies including “Stone Cold” and “The Longest Yard.” Bosworth was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015.

Legendary Texas football coach, Oscar Cripps, is one of the most storied high school football coaches in Texas history. A member of the Greater Houston Football Coaches Association Hall of Honor, Cripps spent the majority of his career as the head coach at Stratford High School. In his 26 years as head coach of the Spartans, Cripps led the team to 163 wins, two state final appearances, seven district titles, eight playoff seasons and a victorious State Championship in 1978. The Texas High School Football Coaches Hall of Honor member coached many greats, including former New England Patriots running back and Pro Bowl selection, Craig James.

The 2016 AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl will feature teams from the Big 12 and SEC conferences and will kick off at 8 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Dec. 28. The game, which is coming off of consecutive sellouts for the first time ever, will be televised nationally on ESPN.

Tickets for the 2016 AdvoCare Texas Kickoff game featuring the University of Houston Cougars and the University of Oklahoma Sooners can be purchased through the website at www.advocaretexaskickoff.com.